Further evidence of an Amerindian contribution to the Polynesian gene pool on Easter Island

Available evidence suggests a Polynesian origin of the Easter Island population. We recently found that some native Easter Islanders also carried some common American Indian (Amerindian) human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles, which probably were introduced before Europeans discovered the island in 1...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Tissue antigens 2009-06, Vol.73 (6), p.582-585
Main Authors: Thorsby, E., Flåm, S. T., Woldseth, B., Dupuy, B. M., Sanchez-Mazas, A., Fernandez-Vina, M. A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Amerindian
Easter Island
Gene Frequency
Gene Pool
Genetics, Population
Haplotypes - genetics
HLA Antigens - genetics
HLA-A Antigens - genetics
HLA-B Antigens - genetics
HLA-C Antigens - genetics
HLA-DQ alpha-Chains
HLA-DQ Antigens - genetics
HLA-DR Antigens - genetics
HLA-DRB1 Chains
human leukocyte antigen alleles
Humans
Indians, South American - genetics
Middle Aged
mitochondrial DNA
Polynesia
Polynesian
Y chromosomes
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Summary:Available evidence suggests a Polynesian origin of the Easter Island population. We recently found that some native Easter Islanders also carried some common American Indian (Amerindian) human leukocyte antigen (HLA) alleles, which probably were introduced before Europeans discovered the island in 1722. In this study, we report molecular genetic investigations of 21 other selected native Easter Islanders. Analysis of mitochondrial DNA and Y chromosome markers showed no traces of an Amerindian contribution. However, high‐resolution genomic HLA typing showed that two individuals carried some other common Amerindian HLA alleles, different from those found in our previous investigations. The new data support our previous evidence of an Amerindian contribution to the gene pool on Easter Island.
ISSN:0001-2815
1399-0039
DOI:10.1111/j.1399-0039.2009.01233.x